DC/WB's "Wonder Woman: Bloodlines" is the latest in its successful run of animated movies, written by Mairgharead Scott and directed by Sam Liu and Justin Copeland. It's also a partial, current-day retelling of Diana Prince's intro, equipped with all the necessary furnishings, including the good, the bad and the deceitful.
The retelling ties Wonder Woman (Rosario Dawson reprising her vocals) to a young lady named Vanessa Kapatelis (Maria Averopoulos) who seems innocent enough on the surface, but is susceptible to dark-side callings. This set-up contrasts to Prince's rise from Themyscira (Paradise Island) and her inherent need to do good. Courage is required to take either side, but we all know which is the preferable. It's up to dear Diana and U.F.O. tracker Steve Trevor (Jeffery Donovan) to drive the melodramatic point home, if they can.
In the process, the film spotlights Wonder Woman's queue of adversaries (btw, Cheetah and Medusa are at their monstrous peak) and the genesis of Vanessa's alter ego, the wicked and winged Silver Swan.
Silver Swan is, therefore, the all-encompassing center of the story, setting it apart from other Wonder Woman adventures, whether live action, printed or animated. Swan a formidable, spiteful supervillainess, but not without pathos, giving the story a redemptive quality.
The story otherwise doesn't (re)define the mythology, but rather carries it in a rich, thoughtful fashion, with emphasis more on characterization than action. The latter, however, still beams bright, and in those scenes where it rolls, man, does it ever deliver in the best two-fisted way.
On the whole, despite its redundancies, "Bloodlines" is a solid entry, which does a resplendent job of promoting Wonder Woman's virtue and veracity. Check it out.
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